Apparatus for interchanging coating pots at a coating line station

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for positioning coating pots at a coating line station constructed in a deep well such that the top of the coating pots is just below the level of the coating line. In one embodiment, the two coating pots carried on transfer cars are conveyed through a 180* angle between a working position and hold position by a turntable mounted in the bottom of the well. The coating pot when in the hold position is adapted to be transferred to an adjacent repair area along rails extending radially on and away from the turntable.

O United States Patent [15] 3,643,627

Killin et al. Feb. 22, 1972 [54] APPARATUS FOR INTERCHANGING 3,082,119 3/1963 Harris ..118/420 COATING POTS AT A COATING LINE 3,200,002 8/1965 Lusher ....1 18/421 STATION 3,566,891 3/1971 Koch ..l 18/421 [72] inventors: King Dwight Killin, Middletown; Ellis Prima ry Examiner-Mervin Stem 5"" Mlamlsbm'g both of Assistant Examiner-Leo Millstein Ohio Attorney-James E. Toomey, Paul E. Calrow and Harold L. [73] Assignee: Kaiser Industries Corporation, Oakland, Jenkms Calif. WM. .A.. ,2 W.. w s 22] Filed: July 23, 1970 [57] ABSTRACT An apparatus for positioning coating pots at a coating line sta- [211 Appl' 57494 tion constructed in a deep well such that the top of the coating pots is just below the level of the coating line. [52] US. Cl ..118/421, 118/419, 134/121 In one embodiment the two coating pots carried on transfer [51] Int. Cl ..BOSC 3/00 cars are conveyed through a 0 angle between a ki [58] Field of Search ..l 18/407, 421, 419, 420; position and d position by a turntable mounted in the b t 134/121, tom of the well. The coating pot when in the hold position is adapted to be transferred to an adjacent repair area along rails [56] References Cited extending radially on and away from the turntable.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 14 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures 279 l Mgu ljlll'ifillflflllflfjliflf'lf luv-n "W V m l r "A mm 0 I V r W s 82 5 l i as as 40 38 3B APPARATUS FOR INTERCIIANGING COATING POTS AT A COATING LINE STATION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to the continuous coating of strip metal with a molten metal and more particularly to an apparatus for interchanging coating pots located at a coating station.

Present line coating operations, such as coating steel with an aluminum film, utilize a fixed aluminum bath station, a fixed premelt station, and various hold stations which are intercoupled by pumping equipment for transferring the molten aluminum from a hold station to the work station or coating bath. A changeover of the molten metal, such as aluminum to zinc, is a very time-consuming operation using the arrangement just mentioned with the result that the coating operation must be interrupted for a substantial period of time. Consequently, there is a need for making this changeover in a substantially shorter time period, and preferably in a much simpler manner. This invention satisfies both of these needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One embodiment of this invention utilizes a turntable of heavy mill-type construction supporting two coating pots which are carried on transfer cars. The transfer cars are adapted to move radially on a pair of rails provided on the turntable which align with a second pair of rails extending away from the turntable when the coating pot is in the hold position to permit the coating pot in the hold position to be moved away from the turntable to an adjacent repair area. The turntable and repair area are located in a deep well such that the top of the coating pots is just below the level of the coating line. There is also a drive mechanism provided for moving the turntable 180 in either direction to interchange the coating pot in the work position with the coating pot in the hold position.

In a second embodiment of this invention, a turntable capable of moving through a small angle is mounted at one end of two sets of support rails such that the coating pot carried on the transfer car can be moved to the end of either of the support rails depending on the position of the turntable.

In a third embodiment, the work position is located at the intersection of two pairs of support rails and the coating pot is mounted on a transfer car which can be guided down one pair of the support rails.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS For a better understanding of this invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of one embodiment of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the second embodiment of this invention; and

FIG. 5 is a top plan view illustrating a third embodiment of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF FIRST EMBODIMENT There is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, a coating line station which is disposed along and forms a part of a continuous coating line for applying a metal film, such as zinc or aluminum, to a continuous strip of metal, such as steel. The coating line station 10 includes a turntable assembly 12 supporting two circular coating pots l4 and 16 carried on the respective transfer cars 18 and 20.

The turntable assembly 12 is mounted within a deep well 22 that is formed along and below the operating level of the coating line. The well 22 is of sufficient size to not only accommodate the turntable assembly 12 but also a repair station or area 24. The turntable assembly 12 comprises an upper cover structure 26 which is circular in shape and of sufficient size to substantially cover the upper opening of well 22 and a base superstructure 30. The-superstructure 30 is rotatably mounted on vertical posts 40 extending upwardly from the bottom surface of well 22 by means of a plurality of concentric ball races 34 which register over balls 36 seated in fixed ball races 38 formed in the upper surface of vertical posts 40. The concentric ball races 34 are formed in the undersurface of a circular baseplate 32 of superstructure 30. V

The turntable assembly 12 is adapted to be rotated through an angle slightly more than l80 by virtue of a drive system (FIG. 2) comprising anielectric motor 42 coupled through a conventional gear unit 44 to a driven gear 46 that is in engagement with a concentric semicircular gear rack 48 affixed to the undersurface of baseplate 32. As shown in FIG. 2, the gear rack 48 extends slightly beyond a 180 angle to permit the turntable assembly 12 to turn through a 180 angle.

The wheels 51 and 53 of transfer cars 14 and 16 are positioned on a pair of rails 50 which extend diagonally across the superstructure 30 for the purpose of guiding the transfer cars 18 and 20 and their associated coating pots l4 and 16 into the repair area 24. The rails 50 are secured crosswise on tubular bars 52 which are affixed to baseplate 32 in a spaced parallel relation.

There are a number of ways of moving the coating pot in the hold position to the repair area 24. One such system is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 and comprises puller cart 56 coupled at 58 to the coating pot and transfer car in the hold position and driven by a drive mechanism 60 to move the same to the repair area 24. The drive mechanism 60 comprises an endless chain or belt 62 trained about the spaced-apart sprockets or pulleys 64 and 66, where the pulley 66 is driven by the output shaft of a motor 68 through the interconnecting endless belt 70. The cart 56 is interconnected to the endless chain or belt 62 by meansof its downward extending support arm 72.

The coating pots 14 and 16 could be any of the well-known conventional vessels, but are preferably coreless induction type in order to eliminate the need for support pots since melting, coating and holding may be. done in the same pot. As shown in FIG. 1, pot 14 is. in the working position and pot 16 is in the holding or standby position. Both pots contain a molten metal, which is maintained at the desired temperature level.

The cover structure 26 for the turntable assembly I0 is supported by a center support post.74 extending vertically from superstructure 30 and support posts, not shown, mounted about the periphery of the turntable and has a pair of circular openings 76 and 78 directly above and in registry, respectively, with the upper open ends of pots 14 and 16. An insulated circular lid 80 covers the coating pot 16 in the hold position.

As illustrated in FIG. I, the continuous strip of metal S is directed downwardly from the guide roll 82 through the vertical leg of the chamber or hood 84 and exits through the nozzle 86, which is immersed in the moltenmaterial of pot 14. An immersed pot roll rig assembly 88 directs the strip of metal S up past a stabilizer roll assembly 90 through a jet nozzle assembly 92, from which the strip of metal S continues toward the next station in thecoating line process.

The chamber 84 has a protective atmosphere which is maintained at a temperature to heat the strip of metal S to a temperature comparable to that of the molten material at the point of immersion into the coating pot 14.

The pot roll rig assembly 88 and the stabilizer roll assembly are attached to, and supportedby, the cover structure 26. Each of these assemblies are detachably mounted to the cover structure 26to permit their ready transfer from coating pot 14 into coating pot 16 when the latter is moved to the coating position.

Referring to FIG..3, the pot roll rig assembly 88 comprises an elongated cylindrical roller 96 rotatably supported on a shaft 98 which extends between the lowerend of the vertical legs 97 and 99of two L-shaped brackets 100,102. As shown in FIG. 2, the horizontal legs, 104, 106 of the two L-shaped Illil II Hit.

brackets 100, 102 have rectangular-shaped mounting plates 108, 1 secured at their outer end with a pair of open-ended slots 114 and 116 at their opposite ends, that fit over four spaced threaded bolts 118 projecting upwardly from support plate 120 on cover structure 26. To accurately center the pot roll rig assembly 88 with respect to the coating pot, the mount ing plates 108 and 110 can be moved laterally relative to the support plates 120 by turning the two pairs of adjustment screws 120 and 122 which extend through threaded apertures in vertical brackets 124 and 126, respectively, and abut against the opposite ends of mounting plates 108 and l 10.

The stabilizing roll assembly 90 functions to hold the strip of metal S under tension and comprises a roller 130 rotatably mounted on the end of one of the arms 132 of a bellcrank lever 134. The bellcrank lever 134 is rotatably mounted on an upstanding leg 136 of a bracket 138 detachably mounted to the cover structure 26. The horizontal plate 140 of the mounting bracket 138 (see FIG. v2) is rectangular in shape and has two pairs of open-ended slots 142 and 144 at the opposite ends of the mounting plate 140, which slidably fit over four threaded screws 146 extending upwardly from cover structure 26. The two mounting plates 140 are displaced horizontally until the roller 130 is in a centered position relative to coating pot l4 and then locknuts 148 are screwed tightly onto the threaded ends of bolts 146. Vertical adjustment of the roller 130 is provided by vertically adjusting the position of the arm 150 of bellcrank 134 by turning a threaded member along upstanding threaded bolt 154 (FIG. 1).

To interchange the position of coating pots 14 and 16, the following operation is performed. The strip of metal S is cut and the chamber 84 is withdrawn vertically by some sort of crane device. The jet nozzle assembly 92 which is mounted on the nozzle 86 portion of the chamber 84 likewise is withdrawn at this time. Next thenuts 148 are unscrewed from the threaded bolts 146 and the stabilizer roll assembly 90 is rotated 180. The mounting plates 108 and 110 are then unfastened from the two support plates 119 and the pot roll rig assembly 88 is lifted out of the coating pot 14 by suitable means such as a crane. The turntable assembly 10 is now rotated l 80 and the above-described procedure is reversed to place the coating line back in operation.

SECOND EMBODIMENT There is illustrated in FIG. 4, the second embodiment of this invention, which comprises two coating pots 200 and 202 carried by transfer cars (not shown) having flanged wheels adapted to be guided along either transfer track 204 or transfer track 206 depending on the position of turntable assembly 208. Turntable assembly 208 comprisesa pair of support rails 210 mounted on a baseplate 212 which can be rotated through an approximate 30 angle by a turntable drive mechanism (not shown). The entire arrangement of FIG. 4 would be mounted in a deep well as illustrated in FIG. 1 with the coating pot 200 shown in the working position.

When it is desired to interchange the coating pots, the turntable assembly 212 would be turned so that the coating pot 200 could be conveyed down track 206 to the dotted position and thereafter the turntable assembly 212 would be rotated 30 clockwise so that the coating pot 202 could be moved into the coating position.

The embodiment of FIG. 4 would likewise employ the components illustrated in FIG. 1 to direct the strip .ofmetal S through the coating pot.

THIRD EMIKBODIMENT There is shown in FIG. 5, a third embodiment of this invention which uses two pairs of intersecting support rails 300 and 302 to convey a coating pot to one of two locations. The coating pot 304 is illustrated in the working position and the coating pot 306 is illustrated in a hold position. To move the coating pot 306 to the working position, the coating pot 304 is conveyed along track 302 to the'dotted position.

Surrounding each of the rails 300, 302 are splash panned areas 310, 312 which include a plurality of sump receptacles 314, 316 to collect the drippings.

As was described with reference to the first embodiment, it will be necessary to remove the fixtures illustrated in FIG. 1 prior to the transfer of the coating pots. The cover arrangement for the third embodiment would include fixed supports for the pot roll rig and the stabilizer roll assembly originating from the floor of the well since no turntable is involved.

What is claimed is:

1. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through said coating station, a melting pot adapted to contain molten metal in a heated condition, and means supporting the pot in a working position in the coating station, said guiding means including means extendible into the pot while the same is in said working position for guiding the strip into and out of the pot, said supporting means mounting the pot for guided travel along a generally horizontal path out of said coating station.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes a turntable rotatably mounted for movement through a certain angle to move the pot supported therein between said working position and a hold position at said coating station.

3. The combination of claim 2, said supporting means further comprising conveying means for moving the pot when in said hold position radially away from said turntable to an adjacent repair area.

4. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes two track means intersecting at said working position and conveying means for selectively moving the pot along one of said track means to a hold position.

5. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes first and second track means extending radially away from the center of said working position, a third track means rotatably mounted for turning about the center of said working position to be brought into an alignment relation with either of first and second track means and carriage means for moving the pot away from said working position along one of said first and second track means.

6. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through said coating station, a melting pot adapted to contain molten metal in heated condition, and means supporting the pot in a working position in the coating station, said guiding means including means extendible into the pot while the same is in said working position for guiding the strip into and out of the pot, said supporting means mounting the pot for guided travel along a generally horizontal path out of said coating station and said supporting means disposed in the bottom of a well, where the depth of the well is selected such that the top of the coating pot is below the level of the coating line.

7. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes a turntable rotatably mounted for movement through a certain angle to move the pot supported thereon between said working position and a hold position at said coating station.

8. The combination of claim 7, said supporting means further comprising conveying means for moving the pot when in said hold position radially away from said turntable to an adjacent repair area.

9. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes two track means intersecting at said working position and conveying means for selectively moving the pot along one of said track means to a hold position.

10. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes first and second track means extending radially away from the center of said working position, a third track means rotatably mounted for turning about the center of said working position to be brought into an alignment relation with either of first and second track means and carriage means for moving the pot away from said working position along one of said first and second track means.

11. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through a coating pot disposed at a work position, a turntable assembly supported in a well below the level of said coating line comprising a rotatably mounted base member and an upper cover member having two openings therein, means mounted on said base for supporting said cover member above said base member a distance slightly greater than the height of a pair of coating pots adapted to be carried on said base member and in registry with said two openings, and means for turning said base member to interchange the position of the two coating pots carried thereon relative to the coating line, so that the coating pot in a hold position is moved to said work position.

12. The combination of claim 11, wherein said means for guiding the strip along and through a coating pot includes a pot roll rig assembly and a stabilizer roll assembly, and means for releasable mounting said pot roll rig assembly and said stabilizer assembly on said cover member adjacent one of said openings such that each assembly is disposed through said one opening.

13. The combination of claim 12, wherein said mounting means includes means to laterally shift the position of said pot roll rig assembly and said stabilizer assembly on said cover member to center each assembly relative to said one opening.

14. The combination of claim 11, further comprising a pair of support rails mounted diametrically across said base member which is circular in shape to its outer peripheral edge and a repair area adjacent said turntable assembly in said well and having a pair of transfer rails extending radially away from said base member, and carrier means for said coating pots to guide them along said support rails and to carry the coating pot in said hold position to said repair area.

"17. HIGH 

1. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through said coating station, a melting pot adapted to contain molten metal in a heated condition, and means supporting the pot in a working position in the coating station, said guiding means including means extendible into the pot while the same is in said working position for guiding the strip into and out of the pot, said supporting means mounting the pot for guided travel along a generally horizontal path out of said coating station.
 2. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes a turntable rotatably mounted for movement through a certain angle to move the pot supported therein between said working position and a hold position at said coating station.
 3. The combination of claim 2, said supporting means further comprising conveying means for moving the pot when in said hold position radially away from said turntable to an adjacent repair area.
 4. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes two track means intersecting at said working position and conveying means for selectively moving the pot along one of said track means to a hold position.
 5. The combination of claim 1, wherein said supporting means includes first and second track means extending radially away from the center of said working position, a third track means rotatably mounted for turning about the center of said working position to be brought into an alignment relation with either of first and second track means and carriage means for moving the pot away from said working position along one of said first and second track means.
 6. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through said coating station, a melting pot adapted to contain molten metal in heated condition, and means supporting the pot in a working position in the coating station, said guiding means including means extendible into the pot while the same is in said working position for guiding the strip into and out of the pot, said supporting means mounting the pot for guided travel along a generally horizontal path out of said coating station and Said supporting means disposed in the bottom of a well, where the depth of the well is selected such that the top of the coating pot is below the level of the coating line.
 7. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes a turntable rotatably mounted for movement through a certain angle to move the pot supported thereon between said working position and a hold position at said coating station.
 8. The combination of claim 7, said supporting means further comprising conveying means for moving the pot when in said hold position radially away from said turntable to an adjacent repair area.
 9. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes two track means intersecting at said working position and conveying means for selectively moving the pot along one of said track means to a hold position.
 10. The combination of claim 6, wherein said supporting means includes first and second track means extending radially away from the center of said working position, a third track means rotatably mounted for turning about the center of said working position to be brought into an alignment relation with either of first and second track means and carriage means for moving the pot away from said working position along one of said first and second track means.
 11. In a coating line for hot dip coating of a continuous strip of metal, said line including a coating station and means for guiding the strip along the line and through a coating pot disposed at a work position, a turntable assembly supported in a well below the level of said coating line comprising a rotatably mounted base member and an upper cover member having two openings therein, means mounted on said base for supporting said cover member above said base member a distance slightly greater than the height of a pair of coating pots adapted to be carried on said base member and in registry with said two openings, and means for turning said base member to interchange the position of the two coating pots carried thereon relative to the coating line, so that the coating pot in a hold position is moved to said work position.
 12. The combination of claim 11, wherein said means for guiding the strip along and through a coating pot includes a pot roll rig assembly and a stabilizer roll assembly, and means for releasable mounting said pot roll rig assembly and said stabilizer assembly on said cover member adjacent one of said openings such that each assembly is disposed through said one opening.
 13. The combination of claim 12, wherein said mounting means includes means to laterally shift the position of said pot roll rig assembly and said stabilizer assembly on said cover member to center each assembly relative to said one opening.
 14. The combination of claim 11, further comprising a pair of support rails mounted diametrically across said base member which is circular in shape to its outer peripheral edge and a repair area adjacent said turntable assembly in said well and having a pair of transfer rails extending radially away from said base member, and carrier means for said coating pots to guide them along said support rails and to carry the coating pot in said hold position to said repair area. 